Make it make sense.

You’re in a public toilet.

You need to poo. Thanking the Lord nobody’s in the ladies, you begin. Pooping in peace. Until, footsteps. The door swings open. Your bum clenches. Stage fright. Mid poo. You can’t go on.

I listened to a hypnobirthing podcast when I was pregnant and this was one of the things I heard that I will never forget. Because it’s true.

And it’s then and there you’re reminded of how much you take the peace and privacy of your own bathroom for granted. Because when we’re uncomfortable, when something doesn’t feel right, we close up (quite literally). Unable to continue per se.

Labour and childbirth are no different.

And going back to the checklist of birth preferences from my hospital, there were lots of simple, comforting things I hadn’t even considered before beginning my quest for a positive birth. Like the option of wearing my own clothes.

Our sensory environment during labour and childbirth greatly contributes to our calm and ability to experience physiological birth. Imagine your favourite hoodie or silky PJ’s. Now imagine a stock standard, cold hospital gown with zero personality. 

Immediately we associate ourselves with these feelings. Warm and familiar versus strange and sterile. How would you feel?

As we subconsciously process our surroundings, our senses react. And consequently, the remarkable hormonal changes that facilitate labour and birth take place. 

Did you know that many women experience a halt in their labour either en route or once arriving to the hospital? When in the comfort of their preferred space as labour progresses, they feel safe. Perhaps it’s quiet. Or lights are dim. Relaxing music playing. Their favourite incense burning.

Or you’re freaking the fuck out.

But nonetheless you’re in your space.

Safe. Comfortable.

So what on Earth could possibly cause you hormone-altering stress on the way to or in hospital? At the immediate hands of medical professionals just in case something goes wrong?

Maybe nothing. But. The unfamiliar. The vulnerability. The rush. The noise. The strangers. The potential for your physiological birth to be interrupted. Or the fear that this may happen (guilty of doing this to myself) is enough to disrupt the magic.

When the onset of labour is spontaneous, your body and your baby are ready to get the show on the road. Coz:

• Your estrogen levels rise, activating your uterus for effective labour
• Your cervix softens and stretches thanks to prostaglandin activity and increasing oxytocin (your love/happy hormone)
• Your uterus will increasingly respond to oxytocin so you can have effective contractions (waves/surges)

So if our bodies are capable of this, why are there options available to artificially initiate this natural process in an otherwise uncomplicated pregnancy?

Talk soon x

 References:

The Role of Oxytocin and the Effect of Stress During Childbirth: Neurobiological Basics and Implications for Mother and Child - PMC

Executive Summary of Hormonal Physiology of Childbearing: Evidence and Implications for Women, Babies, and Maternity Care - PMC